Shared my design to iFi long ago even before discovering this thread (was told by Vincent @ iFi - Audio to share it here) so some of them may or may not have been mentioned already but it was all based on the features I wanted and what some high end DAC seem to offer xD
Warning: Spoiler!(Click to show)

I was looking at some of the DACs that is flowing in the market and I though it would be nice for iFi Audio to include LED lights somewhere within the housing to indicates the bit rate and sample rate the iDSD is playing. Make it blue in color, if not, allow us to choose the color by playing with the switch at the bottom of the housing. The LED should also tell us on how is the iDSD connected. For example, "USB" and "output" to an external amplifier or connected directly into "headphone" or "speaker" it is also important to have a LED that lights up when the music is playing and the other is when the power is on.

the iDSD nano does this already, to some extent. it tells when the battery is charging and when the battery is in need of charging. and different color LEDs signal different bitrates. i'm not sure how much room the micro will have for displays, but hopefully enough. i really like what the iDSD mini is going to do with displays...

Indeed the a black finish would be nice xD I would imagine them to look good hehe

IMO, the nano iDSD is what makes it hard for the micro... They are already near perfect

yeah, the nano is quite a lot of performance for the price. i sold mine because the headphone output wasn't powerful enough, but then again, i was using it as a desktop dac/amp when it's really meant to be portable. that's why i'm looking forward to the idsd mini...the micro isn't in my radar at the moment...but who knows, it may be so great that i end up buying one :)

First of all, this is a great idea. With the technological knowhow behind AMR and iFI, it can only works well.

I will divide it in two:

From the audiophile point of view:

1 – Async USB and Spdif/BNC (please keep it open so it can be used with other common digital sources apart from PC’s and mobile devices). Many audiophiles are on a transition path, they want to ‘taste’ high res files, but they are afraid to go high-end or they are simply short on budget. So they are willing to use PC, but they want to keep using their original CD player. So, why not use both types of digital inputs?

2 – RCA Out on the back.

3 – Battery and AC power.

4 – Led bit rate/resolution (very important).

5 – Defeat able analogue volume, with gain switch bellow, so you can connect directly.

From the generic user point of view (of course, some of the above could be included ):

1 – Headphone output, with 3D and Xbass

3 – Battery and AC Power.

2 - Wireless (maybe Bluetooth). More and more people are using cloud services, like Tune in or Spotify to listen music (this has nothing to do with high quality, but anyway it’s a way of listening music) and more and more wireless connection is in our day by day lives. If the implementation is cheap and technically possible, it could be an important point in favour of the non-audiophile user or the audiophile that sometimes only wish to listen some tunes from his mobile source be it iOS or Android without getting up from the sofa. And it makes more sense in a iDSD Micro or Nano than of course on a Mini.
User friendly!..

Going through the thread, I have realised that an important point has been missed.

Though many would like this to be an all-singing/all dancing device, this is not supposed to be sen in the same vein as the mega portable DAC/amps such as CEntrance HiFi-M8, CypherLabs Theorem 720, or Chord Hugo.

Remember the name of the product? micro iDSD? As in 'micro'?

This device will be small, portable and transportable, so let's focus on reasonable features that utilise this.

For me, the most important part is the USB input noise reduction, and to include something like the iPurifier inbuilt into the micro iDSD.

I trust, strongly, the technical R&D chops of the designers/engineers, so I hope the features that has already been decided on will work out greatly.

I'll add more to this thread another time.

Yes - thanks. Think cigar-sized box. Same chassis as across the whole of the micro range.

Since most of the suggestion on hardware has been mentioned, I'll suggest a look into the software. Perhaps a more advanced driver control panel with customizable setting or even some dedicated plug-in for some of the popular playback software.

We try to avoid adjustments in the digital domain as much as possible. This is why the AMR/iFi driver automatically bypasses the digital volume control for example.

With a Dig Vol Control, except for running at 100%, bits of data will be lost - there is no getting around it.

We will stick with the analogue volume control seen across the rest of the range. It costs more (obviously) but the sonics are worth it.

yeah, the nano is quite a lot of performance for the price. i sold mine because the headphone output wasn't powerful enough, but then again, i was using it as a desktop dac/amp when it's really meant to be portable. that's why i'm looking forward to the idsd mini...the micro isn't in my radar at the moment...but who knows, it may be so great that i end up buying one :)

Most customers use the same iPhone IEMs as with the nano iDSD. So they ask for attenuation.

But then there are customers who use headphones and need drive.

It is a nice conundrum to try to offer a serious level flexibility to suit both sets of customers.

We dont think anything exists at the moment that suits such a diverse range. We made a 'little' breakthrough recently so you guys may all get your wish.

First of all, this is a great idea. With the technological knowhow behind AMR and iFI, it can only works well.

I will divide it in two:

From the audiophile point of view:

1 – Async USB and Spdif/BNC (please keep it open so it can be used with other common digital sources apart from PC’s and mobile devices). Many audiophiles are on a transition path, they want to ‘taste’ high res files, but they are afraid to go high-end or they are simply short on budget. So they are willing to use PC, but they want to keep using their original CD player. So, why not use both types of digital inputs?

2 – RCA Out on the back.

3 – Battery and AC power.

4 – Led bit rate/resolution (very important).

5 – Defeat able analogue volume, with gain switch bellow, so you can connect directly.

From the generic user point of view (of course, some of the above could be included ):

1 – Headphone output, with 3D and Xbass

3 – Battery and AC Power.

2 - Wireless (maybe Bluetooth). More and more people are using cloud services, like Tune in or Spotify to listen music (this has nothing to do with high quality, but anyway it’s a way of listening music) and more and more wireless connection is in our day by day lives. If the implementation is cheap and technically possible, it could be an important point in favour of the non-audiophile user or the audiophile that sometimes only wish to listen some tunes from his mobile source be it iOS or Android without getting up from the sofa. And it makes more sense in a iDSD Micro or Nano than of course on a Mini.
User friendly!..

Hi

Good thought process here. To answer.

Audiophile

1. Asynch USB - already been there and done that! Been in the AMR and iFi line since 2009.

This is the 'micro' so it needs to work as a portable and as a desktop. Real estate for BNCs is unlikely as RCAs is already there.

2. RCAs - will continue same theme as iDAC.

3. Battery/Power - nano iDSD has already told us the battery is a monster feature.

4. LED Bit-Rate - as per nano iDSD...

5. Yes, fixed and variable camps both want their thing.

Generic

1. Headphone with 3D and XBass. Gulp!

2. Battery and AC. Battery definite because of sales of nano iDSD. Portable is big and it aint going away.

3. Wireless - the chassis size is a limit. As well as the cost of adding this. We do have a wireless project in the skunkworks. It is is reserved for a future project or two. This is a less popular option but good to raise here for other people to think about. You could add this to the mini iDSD thread. We will take note and good for other readers to see this.